So I had managed to get my hands on For Answer a while ago after a friend of mine kept saying I should try out one of the 4th gen AC games. Just felt like putting down some of my thoughts after somehow managing to clear all Collared and Orca ranked matches, as well as all 42 missions on Normal:

- Not sure about anyone else, but the NEXTs feel so much more mobile than the ACs in 5/Verdict Day. Going back to Verdict Day afterwards was a little hard for me, so I can only imagine how it must of been at first for some people.

- Arms Forts. The feeling of overcoming them first time, especially those like Spirit of Motherwill and Answerer.

- I love the story, and how they put in three possible endings. I prefer the Orca path most, Collared is a close second. Old King.. the final mission is fun, because it tests you big time (IMO), but I just don't really like the outcome. The second to last mission sorta makes me feel a little sick at what you have to do.

- Touching on the previous point, after going through some of ACVD again afterwards, it felt like the Old King ending is the canon (spelling?) one.. if 4th and 5th gens are in the same universe.

Like the topic title said, these are just random thoughts that I felt like sharing since I wasn't able to do so earlier. n.n;

Life can be like a Pokemon battle. You can be doing fine and then you get haxed for the next five battles. But that doesn't change your chances in the future. No matter how many times you're knocked down you can move on if you can still get up again. Just keep setting up and countering until you see the momentum changing.

- Not sure about anyone else, but the NEXTs feel so much more mobile than the ACs in 5/Verdict Day. Going back to Verdict Day afterwards was a little hard for me, so I can only imagine how it must of been at first for some people.

- Touching on the previous point, after going through some of ACVD again afterwards, it felt like the Old King ending is the canon (spelling?) one.. if 4th and 5th gens are in the same universe.

Well, NEXTs certainly travel at much higher speeds than 5th-generation ACs, or any other generation of ACs, for that matter. Whether you like 4th over the others can sometimes be preference. I don't know how to handle a NEXT myself, so I can't really add anything more useful than that.

There's been a lot of speculation that generations 4 and 5 share a common universe, due to a special sortie boss bearing a striking resemblance to motherwill, some of the wreckages on certain maps, the presence of kojima particles, and the existence of N-WGIX. (Which is said to be short for NEXT-White Glint IX)

In terms of favourite AC games, 4 and 4A are my least favourite in the series (But they are still AWESOME games).

I find that the NEXTs are a bit too flashy for my tastes, which is why I prefer 3rd and 5th gen. 3rd gen felt like the right amount of balance between flashy and realism, and 5th gen was a interesting take on the series.

What I did like about 4 and 4A was the introduction of a third defence type (Primal Armor), quick boost, and infinite ground boost. everything else was either a "meh" or "WI don't particularly like this decision"

Still an excellent game though. I still play it fairly frequently.

Defeat is just temporary. I will return, and I will beat you eventually!

I know nothing is confirmed, but the nods to 4th gen in Verdict Day (don't know if 5 has any as well) make me believe there is something. If not, well it's still neat what FromSoft has done.

I sadly don't have access to 3rd gen AC games, but I am working on getting access after being told they were on the PSN store.

A silly thing I did in one my third playthrough. I wanted to emulate the opening of the game, so I pretty much made White Glint since I had all the parts (but not enough FRS memory for the schematic) to go fight Motherwill and managed to S rank the mission. (was only able to get A rank in the first playthrough, second playthrough I fought AF Cabracan)

Life can be like a Pokemon battle. You can be doing fine and then you get haxed for the next five battles. But that doesn't change your chances in the future. No matter how many times you're knocked down you can move on if you can still get up again. Just keep setting up and countering until you see the momentum changing.

In ACV there are a few ORCA banners that can be seen in Father's city. That right there is a nod to 4A.

Huh, that is indeed quite the nod. Another fun thing, is me realizing what are some of the things I've seen in ACVD after playing For Answer.

Life can be like a Pokemon battle. You can be doing fine and then you get haxed for the next five battles. But that doesn't change your chances in the future. No matter how many times you're knocked down you can move on if you can still get up again. Just keep setting up and countering until you see the momentum changing.

Gen 4 will, for me, always be the iconic generation of Armored Core, partially because it's what I started with. Every time I go back to it, I'm stunned by the story, the aesthetics, the characters, the gameplay... everything just feels so strong and immersive compared to V. VD was a lot better, but still no match for Gen 4.

Personally, AC4 is actually my favourite, because of the above-mentioned reasons. FA's gameplay was superior on almost every level (it felt so much smoother, faster and more responsive), but I absolutely loved the aesthetic, characters and storyline of 4. It really got me hooked on the series, and there's so much that I wish was explored about 4's story. Little tidbits (like mentioning that Sara Angelic, one of the Lynx you fight in the Simulations, is a child soldier) lead to infinite imagination for someone like me.

I'm really glad they linked VD's story to FA. Personally, I take the approach that V follows on from Old King's ending (which explains both the overwhelming planetary destruction and the loss of NEXT tech - Strayed is the last surviving Lynx at the end of that path), and that Strayed is the 'Dark Raven' of myth (which I need to write a short explanation of sometime).

This in itself is partially because it adds a fascinating dimension to the Reaper Squad. Their desire to destroy anyone with potential is to prevent a repeat of the Old King incident, where one pilot became capable of overpowering the entire world. I like the idea of them as well-intentioned extremists who've tried to find a positive use for their addiction to combat, as opposed to just being outright crazy (and thus, boring).

Personally, AC4 is actually my favourite, because of the above-mentioned reasons. FA's gameplay was superior on almost every level (it felt so much smoother, faster and more responsive), but I absolutely loved the aesthetic, characters and storyline of 4. It really got me hooked on the series, and there's so much that I wish was explored about 4's story. Little tidbits (like mentioning that Sara Angelic, one of the Lynx you fight in the Simulations, is a child soldier) lead to infinite imagination for someone like me.

I didn't like the fact that a NEXT could get shredded in 5 seconds flat once its Primal Armor was gone. You'd think an Armored Core would have a bit more Armor on it...

Defeat is just temporary. I will return, and I will beat you eventually!

I actually liked that - it made a good explanation for why PA was considered such an overwhelmingly powerful factor, and it seemed to me to quite realistically represent the armour you'd be sticking on something of that mobility.

Honestly my favorite part of the game was the fights against the Arms Forts and the really nice story about mercenaries stuck on a diseased planet being forced to fight in a never ending battle for survival.